Sports

Masalsky's Strong Second Half Propels Marauders to Playoff Road Win

Dedham's girls basketball team beat Hanover Tuesday night 58-54.

The Dedham girls basketball team exploited its height advantage over Hanover in the second half of Tuesday's MIAA preliminary playoff game and used it to beat the Indians to the glass for easy put-backs en route to a 58-54 win.

"They're not that big, we just came out slow. In the second, we just picked it up," said sophomore Ellen Masalsky.

Masalsky led the charge on the offensive boards and often found herself open under the hoop. She scored a dozen points in the second half and finished with 17.

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"I just drove from the outside, which I normally don't do, and just worked really hard," Masalsky said.

With the Indians' defense spread thin, Dedham fed Masalsky and Mary-Kate Sullivan several times throughout the second half, and they both drilled 10-foot jumpers that kept Dedham close.

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"I thought she did a real nice job," Savi said. "She kept us in the game in the third quarter, that's for sure."

Sullivan finished with four points.

The Marauders trailed for the majority of the game, but went up with two minutes to go in the fourth quarter. 

At halftime, coach Don Savi wanted to find a way to open up the middle of Hanover's defense in order to combat a three-point disadvantage. He spread his guards out wide on the arc, forcing Hanover to extended its 3-2 zone defense.

"They woudl stay with Jenna [Savi] and Kim [Whalen] and it opened middle for whoever wanted the middle. And then we had the low post because we outnumbered them," Savi said.

Dedham still trailed Hanover throughout most of the second half, and by as much as six points at one point. But on the back of Masalsky, a big 3-pointer from junior Jenna Savi and a shot-clock-expiring floater by Savi after weaving through traffic, the Marauders took control late in the game.

"That's one of those main plays we run. We wait until one second on the clock and throw it off the glass," Savi joked.

Jenna Savi's 3-ball brought Dedham within a point with 2:10 left in the game, and her floater put them up by four with less than a minute to go. Savi led all scorers with 19 points - including eight of her team's final nine points.

Dedham shined at the free throw line as well, as the Marauders shot 20-for-36 from the stripe. 

The first half was a different story. Dedham struggled against Hanover's zone press defense that led to a handful of easy fast-break points for the Indians. Combined with an inability to open up the middle of their zone, Dedham couldn't get in much of a rhythm. Fortunately for the Marauders, they shot 10-for-17 from the charity stripe in the first half to keep them in the game.

"It was awesome to win, especially not at home," Masalsky said after the game.

Dedham will next face top-seeded and South Coast Conference champions Wareham (19-1) on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Wareham. 

"We are just going to have to be ready. They're 19-1 for a reason," Savi said.


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